Studio Canal / Kinowelt / Optimum

[tenia]

What's interesting however is that supposedly, this applies to both SC DVD, SC BD and Criterion BD, but IIRC, they all have a different grading.

[Finch]

Conversation restoration trailer

[therewillbeblus]

The Conversation's artwork betrays the feeling of that final scene, which is not warm, nor open. The cover threatens to romanticize Hackman's solitude, freed of walls as barriers to his artistic/musical expression - If they wanted to use the final shot, they should've done a birds-eye-view to exhibit the claustrophobic, cold, de-romanticized loneliness indicated by it.

[nicolas]

The Conversation has been scanned in 4K from the original camera negative, using a director-approved reference print as a color grading reference. The 5.1 sound mix created in 2000 by Walter Murch will be included, as will the original mono audio track. American Zoetrope restoration supervisor James Mockoski was involved in this work, which was approved by Coppola.

Source: https://thedigitalbits.com/columns/my-t ... 50224-1500

[MichaelB]

Yes, this is a rare instance of the 5.1 track arguably being more interesting than the original mono track, because there's little doubt that Murch would have gone full multichannel in 1974 had it been a viable option for a comparatively modestly-budgeted film that most likely wouldn't have been showcased in cinemas that could handle multichannel sound. It's good that they've been purist enough to include the mono track, but I'd definitely favour the 5.1 here.

Indeed, didn't Murch more or less invent the 5.1 configuration with Apocalypse Now a few years later?

[tenia]

A few years ago, Coppola said that yeah, he's the one that kinda pushed multichannel in theaters with Apocalypse Now, Spielberg pushed blockbusters through Jaws, and Lucas (years later) pushed digital filmmaking, despite all 3 originally originating from the New Hollywood, so not really where you'd expect such evolutions to come from.

[Calvin]

There are listings up for new Blu-Ray and DVD releases of Melville's Army of Shadows on June 3rd and it looks like the UK won't be getting a UHD release like France. And currently English subtitles aren't listed for the French release either, which is a little odd since SC obviously own it in both territories.

[MichaelB]

It's also a tad ironic, since the film was a significant critical and commercial flop in France (releasing what was widely seen as a pro-De Gaulle film the year after May 1968 was what Sir Humphrey Appleby would describe as "courageous"), and went down far better in Anglophone countries.

Still, the 4K edition seems to offer German subtitles, so my Oppo player will be able to replace these with English subs ripped from the older Blu-ray. (The only technical requirement is that there's at least one extant subtitle track on the actual disc.)

[What A Disgrace]

Baffling move. Did Le cercle rouge just not sell well in the UK?

[MichaelB]

Well, StudioCanal will be privy to all relevant figures - and they'll also be far better informed than many labels about UK-based UHD sales in general - so they presumably have their reasons.

[andyli]

Maybe a 4K link will pop up at a later date, or they could, like Kind Hearts and Coronets, regret and issue a 4k copy much later.

[nicolas]

Criterion could have taken the 4K rights for US and UK. It'd be their first SC UK UHD but I wouldn't rule anything out with them. They’ve given us surprises this year already with their deals with Milestone (I am Cuba) and Film Movement (Farewell My Concubine) which I assume the fewest of us have expected to happen.

Should the SC UHD turn out to be another Le cercle rouge, I hope Criterion come to the rescue. I don’t know how well Army of Shadows sold for Criterion during the BD era, seemingly enough to warrant picking up the license again and doing a nearly identical reprint of their first (OOP) BD.

[Calvin]

I can understand why Canal wouldn't issue it in the UK if sales of Le cercle rouge were poor, but I don't understand why they wouldn't put English subtitles on their French release. Surely, it wouldn't add any cost at all, considering they'll already have the subtitle file (maybe even in the same package as I doubt they're replicating two different Blu-Rays).

Hopefully the specs are just wrong.

[andyli]

It'd make sense to exclude the English subs if indeed another label like Criterion seized the (4k) rights in both UK and US territories. Then in this situation the UK blu-ray to be issued by Studio Canal would be a curious case. As it will feature the newest 4K restoration, whereas the hypothetical Criterion UHD will for sure just pack its old blu-ray in the combo.

Has this kind of arrangement ever happened before?

[FrauBlucher]

Terence Young's Red Sun being prepared for a 4K